Recognition as a specialist

Specialisation is demanded by the public and increasingly so by the profession. Being a specialist involves education, training, experience and continuing professional development. Membership of the ACPGBI reflects an interest and knowledge of surgery of diseases of colon and rectum with opportunities for lifelong development.

Delegates at the Annual Meeting in Dublin 2012

Professional support and mentorship

The MDT process within each Trust is subject to the Peer Review Process. Quality assurance of the surgery performed for colorectal cancer places the surgeon as a core member of the MDT. This recognition is reflected through membership of the ACPGBI.

Expert assessors in colon and rectal disease surgery, from within the membership of the ACPGBI, assist the Royal College of Surgeons of England’s Independent Review Mechanism (IRM) in an enquiry of the professional conduct of an individual surgeon or Trust.

Private Healthcare providers require specialist surgeons to perform colon and rectum disease surgery. Membership of the ACPGBI reflects this professional status and is respected in cases of litigation.

Professional development

Partnership, through the ACPGBI, in national and international collaborative projects on diseases of the colon and rectum with other professional organisations is available.

Eligibility for research funding from the Bowel Disease Research Foundation (BDRF), the charitable funding arm of the ACPGBI, requires the applicant to be a member of the ACPGBI.

Participation as trainer or trainee; in National Training Programmes alongside access to national, regional and local education opportunities can be more readily gained through membership of the ACPGBI.

Revalidation tools and practices are being developed for specialist surgeons in diseases of the colon and rectum and will be available to help ACPGBI members with the collation and presentation of information.

Reduced registration rates at Annual Meeting.

Privileged access

The member’s section of the ACPGBI website offers a wide range of training and education facilities both interactive and for downloading.

Colorectal Disease Journal is the ‘high impact’, internationally respected, official publication of the ACPGBI. It is included within the membership subscription for Ordinary Surgical Members.